Children of War: The Black Ones Invade
Previous Chapter | Next Chapter Children of War: The Black Ones Invade Sound the Alarm! It was barely received, but the notice was clear. Mere minutes before the train was about to erupt from the town square Glynda and Oobleck managed to patch a signal through the underground tunnel to Beacon. There they could rally a surmountable counterattack as soon as the Grimm would pool out. So when air-ships began to race towards the site, Team JNPR could only look on with trepidation and surprise. An enormous King Taiju along with a horde of Ursai, Bewolves and other monstrocities raced out, clambering their way from a hole made by the front half of the angled train. They seemed to ignore the distant, shimmering box that held the injured students within it along with two professors from the school. Even as people screamed and ran away, the beasts pursued with a bloodthirst that could never be quenched. The creatures of darkness were unleashed! And they were about to dive into the thick of it. "So...uh," Jaune tried to muster up the nerve to talk, realizing just how close to the bigger of the animals they were being brought to. "A little early for graduation, don't you think?" "Jaune, we can do this. Everyone is counting on us to pull through; Ruby, Anthony and the others are depending on us. Just focus on one enemy at a time before the horde, okay?" "O-Okay, P-Pyrrha," Jaune nodded, shaking a bit as he forced a grin at her. "J-Just watch your back, alright?" "Of course. I have you, Nora and Ren to help me with that," She nodded with affirmation, just as they were thirty seconds to departure. "Isn't that right, guys?" "Must you even ask that question?" Despite his own personal apprehension amongst other emotions that swelled upon seeing the Grimm, Ren was able to keep his usual tone and a calm demeanor as he observed the battlefield. One hand was holding the railing above their heads, while another was fixed on one of his sheathed sub-machine guns. He had briefly taken his eyes away from the Grimm, regarding Pyrrha with a small nod. "We'll be behind you every step of the way." "Yeah!" Nora's enthusiastic voice chirped. Unlike him, both of her hands were occupied with Magnhild's grenade launcher form. It was lowered but readied to be raised and fired at any given moment. Her gaze was focused on the Grimm, a toothy grin being made out of her face. "We're not gonna miss out on the chance to blow the crap outta some Grimm! Especially when they decide to waltz in on our kingdom!" Her encouraging attitude earned her his small smile, and he turned his attention back to the Grimm below. Thanks to the Bullhead closing distance, he could see people fighting the creatures of Grimm now. He squinted his eyes, taking in their details. There was team ARES. There was team RWBY. There was-- His eyes widened in shock, and he had to do a double-take in order to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. He wasn't the only one who saw it; the smile faded from Nora's face in exchange for curious bemusement as she shared Ren's gaze. "Wait a minute," She commented, lowering her grenade launcher to point down at a few particular figures. "Isn't that Harkin and his personal guys? Why are they with ARES and RWBY? Why aren't they trying to fight us or whatever?" Ren's eyes narrowed, the fight with Lionel still fresh in his mind. The hand that clutched one of Stormflower's SMGs tightened ever so slightly. "Let's play it by ear," Jaune intoned, still rattled by the numbers the Grimm possess. With a few deep breaths he motivated himself to will his eyes back open. The airship briefly touched the ground and he hopped out, allowing the transport with the pilot to take back off to avoid being dragged down by the horde of beasts. Pyrrha on his right and Nora with Ren on his left, he unsheathed his sword and raised his shield up to bear. "Back them up and move forward!" As he charged in, Pyrrha laid down a few suppressive shots. Each one hit particularly big Grimm along the skull, making them rear about and turn to snarl. One got shot in the eye and another into the back of the throat. They gargled in rage and howled, just before a spear flew into one's mouth and out the back in a shower of black ichor right before it thrust through the other's skull out the hole in its eye. With both of them down, Pyrrha caught her weapon expertly while smashing her shield against a Beowolf's skull and snap kicking an Ursa with a backflip forward. Slashing his belly open and stabbing its heart, she'd join Jaune's side. "Okay," The blonde began as the other two were fighting some of the wittling numbers of their area, looking at Ruby, to Anthony, and then at Seth to Blake. "Can someone tell me why you guys are fighting figuratively -and kind of literally- next to our enemies?!" "I-It's complicated-" "Summarize it then, Ruby!" He shouted exasperatedly, turning on his heel to parry a few clawed blows of an Ursa before shield bashing it up the jaw and impaling it through the heart. Spastically backpedaling away from his collapsing corpse, he sheepishly turned back and awaited an explanation. "Please! Cause I'm sorely tempted in stabbing them right now! Like, alot!" She wouldn't get the chance to speak, for it was the very enemy he spoke against who took her place. "And I'd rather bash the brains of you and your clique of runts," Harkin said vehemently, keeping his eyes on the monsters. His bat was gripped in two hands and held parallel with his form at the ready. As much as he was surrounded by the detestable sight of Beacon's students, the need to survive was much more important than his grudge. His sights were set on an Ursa who had gotten particularly antsy and rushed him. "But unfortunately, all these monsters got in the way at the wrong time!" A powerful swing caused the body of the bat to meet the Ursa's head with a sickening pang and crack, and it fell back to the earth with a heavy thud. His form twisted to meet others, swinging always with enough force to crush the bone. What Grimm that faced him suffered the fates of having their bodies - particularly, their skulls - caved in before they disintegrated. His form was disclipined and accurate, yet showing an embrace of brute force and suppressive firepower. It was a perfect compliment to the cold resolve he carried within him. "No kidding!" Anthony grunted, a scowl plastered on his face as he swung the massive blade off his shoulders. With the help of a vein-enhanced arm, he was able to slice his way through several Grimm within a matter of seconds. Without both arms to support the weight, it felt like the blade was going to tear his remaining one out of its socket. But with each swing, groups of enemies were being taken down. His efforts were greatly clearing a path. "A good weapon to chop your sorry ass in half, and I gotta spend it cutting down these freaks instead of you?!" "Don't overthink it, Jaune!" Seth called out, landing accurate and well-placed shots onto vital spots of his bigger and heavier targets. Not too far away, he could see Rhea and Fehin getting in close and tearing several monsters to shreds with their blades. They seemed like ghosts on the battlefield, barely being detected or deterredby the storm of Grimm. "We all just went on silent agreement that the Grimm are gonna fuck us harder than we can fuck each other! None of us wanna get fucked by the Grimm!" "What the sad excuse for a male said!" Lionel called out, earning Seth's angered eye twitch. He was steadily manipulating a storm of bullets with his sword, tearing through his targets without having to move too much from his position. He wore a clear smirk as he conducted the bullets, finding a comfortable position even in the massive hoarde. "So you can relax, Jaune of Arc! We may be out to burn you at the stake at any other time. But right now, we've got your back!" He briefly looked over at the other blonde, giving a thumbs up with his free hand. "'Specially from me! I heard the reports about you one-upping Taurus! Major kudos to you on that, my brother!" At this point, Rhea had fallen back to the side of JNPR and lowered her blades for a moment, turning an eerily serene gaze to Jaune. "There is no need to rush." She said smoothly, licking her lips and slowly tilting her head. "We can always post-pone our fateful encounters if need be. We'll have all the time in the world to spill each other's blood." Then, she bent her head and neck back at what appeared to be an uncomfortable angle in order to look over at Pyrrha. Her eyes slowly widened, almost as if realization was coming to her. Then, she adopted a Cheshire cat's grin, her eyes sparkling with a twisted delight. "Then again," She continued, directing her words to the red-headed Spartan with malevolent fascination. "I don't think that you, of all people, have much time left. Have you made peace... Doomed one?" Pyrrha gawked at the gall this demented girl had to say to her. What was she, a vague prophet or fortune teller? Shaking her head, she pointed her spear towards her with a steeled look in her eyes, "I don't care what you, a psychopath, has to say about my destiny. I'll live the way I want to the very end. And if I just happen to meet death's embrace, I will gladly do so if it means destroying monsters like you and saving those I hold dear." "Can we hold off on the grand speeches till AFTER we destroy these monsters?!" Jaune cried out, finally accepting the fact they have to fight side by side with enemies to destroy the fiends swarming around and about. The red-haired warrior nodded with understanding, rushing about to see most of Ruby's team in a defensive huddle. Weiss had her head bandaged, her glyphs being utilized to support those around her while she leaned against some train debris that came from a twisted car. Blake was blitzing the enemy, using what ammo she has left from her fight to use on approaching Grimm while Yang was completely sapped and leaning pathetically on a train car sheet. Ruby was standing in front of her sister, taking potshots with Crescent Roes all the while. "This is madness! How are we supposed to keep fighting when so many of us are beyond our limit?!" She thought with her lips bitten down, her body automatically spinning away from a simian shaped Grimm as it smashed the earth beside her. Turning around she slashed and parried, her shield absorbing the brute's fist while stumbling only a few feet back. Jumping up she jammed her shield in its open maw and thrust her spear into its eye, pulling the trigger to shoot through its skull out the other side. Landing with a graceful fall, she turned to see a few other airships drop teams from Beacon Academy that were familiar faces. Team CFVY and Team MKBD to be precise. A temporary source of relief for the heroes, and a greater bane for the villains. "Their line's about to collapse!" Mose's voice called out to his teammates as soon as he and their boots hit the ground. "Let's give 'em a hand!" One fourth of a second later, his legs carried him in front of them and to the storm of Grimm threatening his colleagues. He was a wraith, shredding the targets he could get within arms' length of while peppering the rest with his sub-machine rounds. He swiftly dodged claw, paw and barbed tail, keeping a cold concentration in his gaze and a burning fire in his soul - a fire that burned hotter when he saw the figure of Lionel fighting against the Grimm. There was no question why; there were more pressing issues at hand. But first, the area had to be properly cleared. He had no worry; his team and team CFVY would see to that. The shoulder-mounted arm cannon Bonnie sported was the first culprit. Large bolts of what he could assume to be fire Dust were launched, blasting the halpless Grimm into dissolving pieces. The small girl sported a toothy grin of enthusiasm on her face, pulling the trigger as much as she could. At the same time, she kept her aim focused so that she wouldn't waste her shots or hit anyone of her allies by accident. Right beside her was Kiarra, who was in a crouched position with her rifle aimed and readied. Her smaller bullets weaved through the large bolts Bonnie shot, picking off whatever the grenadier missed. Like Mose, she carried a frosty chill within her gaze. But like him, there was a smile that accompanied hers: the same type of smile she had expressed back in Forever Fall. It didn't falter, even in the face of overwhelming numbers. And finally, there was Delilah, the only one who had been right behind Mose in his frontal assault. Although she too was careful not to hit her allies, the strokes of her axe were more sweeping and wide thanks to the size and weight of her weapon. Her expression was more akin to Bonnie's, sporting good cheer even as she cut swathes through the small groups that challenged her. It was reminiscent of how she had fought against the White Fang troops at the forest base, only this time, she was fully healed and in a better state of mind. Eventually, the two were able to reach the spot where the majority of their allies were concentrated. Delilah was the first one to speak, finding the path momentarily clear to do so. "You guys look like hammered shit... no offense." She remarked, briefly lowering her weapon to gaze at Harkin's group. "Who're these guys?" "That would be Harkin and his personal group of escorts." Ren inquired, keeping his SMGs at the ready and a calm tone within his voice. "We're in a silently agreed cease-fire - at least, until all of these Grimm are destroyed." "Ugh!" Nora groaned, Magnhild's hammer form being held with a vice-grip in both hands. However, she did not yet continue the attack. "He was right! These Grimm are getting in the way! Why are there so many coming out of that hole?! It's like the whole underground was woken up!" "A Grimm horde this large doesn't just conjugate out of the blue." Mose said tersely, his eyes sweeping the area. The majority of the Grimm had been pushed back for the time being, but more weren't too far away from their current location. "What in the world pulled them here?" "That," Rhea piped in, giggling. "Would be all because of your blonde-haired friend. The violent and blood-thirsty one, not the wimpy and developing one." Mose cocked a skeptic, annoyed eyebrow at her. "Excuse me?" "Apparently, she forgot about the basic fact Grimm are attracted to negative emotions." Rhea gave an inappropriately casual shrug. "From the very start of her walk-in, she's been nothing but a malestrom of hate and malice. Granted, all of it didn't come from her, but she does hold sizable responsibility." Her eyes squinted a little as she turned her gaze over towards Yang, her tongue playfully sticking out. "And now look at her! Just like all others consumed by their malevolence, she is left a broken and useless shell. Poor her~!" "...wow." Nora muttered, momentarily relaxing her grip to look over at her teammates. "She's a loonie for sure." Because he was in her blind spot, she missed the look of incredulity given to her by Ren. Yang felt sick to her stomach. The whole time she tried to dial her anger down to a managable state when she went to go rescue Anthony, the rest of ARES and Professor Goodwitch. But that didn't mean it evaporated. It just boiled until it came to a head when she fought Neo. The strange mute was a punching bag that let loose her volatile emotions and she didn't hold back. Even though there were vile people with despicable intentions already on the transport, she knew her own emotions must have rang them up to eleven without knowing it. Closing her eyes, she just hoped something would put her out of her misery so the nightmare and the pain of knowing her responsibility in this dire plan was over. "Don't waste time talking to that creep!" Jaune ordered Nora, dishing out a resentful glare at Rhea. "She's not worth talking to. Cutting down Grimm is more important-!" "Agreed!" Pyrrha interjected, suddenly cutting down a Geist that had possessed a wrecked flagpole and had intended to attack him from behind. Landing on it with an efficient stomp, she stabbed its weak point and silenced the wraith-type Grimm at once. With Jaune smiling sheepishly as he returned to fight, she too glared only once at Rhea. "I don't plan on dying today, cur! So you keep holding your breath till the day I decide I draw my last breath, and then some more." These antics were lost to the other team that had arrived. From their perspective, they walked into an outright disaster of glorious proportions. People were being ferretted away from the worst of it while the bodies of those who couldn't escape the initial outbreak were left to decay and bleed out. Even the heartiest among them shuddered at the mere sight of it. But Coco took command. "Yatsu, cover our flanks. Velvet, stay close to me and Fox watch our backs!" She rang out with small gestures while walking up to an Alpha Ursa. The creature turned to snarl, only for her to crack her suitcase up its jaw hard enough to send it crashing on its back. Leaning forward while lowering her shades, she raised a brow as the bleeding creature's face reared around after rolling on its haunches upright. "Is that all you have?" Howling loudly, it aimed to snap at her body in one chomp of its enormous jaws. With a side-swipe of her right leg, teeth were smashed out of their place and its exterior bone-plated tissue was cracked. Falling over inert, other Grimm were attracted to the origin of its mutual bretheren's demise. Velvet was about to open her own compact weapon, only for Coco to shake her head with a small smile. "No, it's not time yet. Allow me," She grinned, unfolding her Mocha Twist in its Gatling gun form. In a matter of seconds a great deal of the monsters on the exposed field that had come out of the hole were torn into shreds. She maintained a calm yet disturbing smile as a hail of Dust rounds clattered around her ankles as she simply swerved and maneuvered her enormous weapon at incoming enemies. All the while Yatsu grabbed some bigger Grimm by the throat, smashing them against a knee or the ground before dicing them up with his nodachi. With Fox using his scimitar weapons, he cut off some of the more crafty enemies that tried to cut them off from behind. Team CFVY moved in an efficient clean manner, making even Pyrrha and Jaune gawk at their elimination of so many Grimm. But even so, their efforts were just a temporary damper on the seemingly neverending wave of Grimm that spawned. Anthony could barely acknowledge the new arrivals, lest he risk getting ambushed by the creatures. Another mighty swing rended several unfortunate abominations out of existence, accompanied by a burning ache within his lone arm. He fell to one knee, nearly dropping the rod of iron called a sword. Although his Aura had healed his injuries, his stamina had not been restored. Had he his metallic arm still, wielding the thing would've been much easier. Now, he was cursing himself for bringing it instead of his old weapon in the first place. "Anthony!" Elisha panted, suddenly leaping beside the one-armed man. Although he was relatively untouched by the Grimm's attempts to destroy him, the effects of torture was taking its toll on his energy reserves, too. "We're surrounded! At this rate, we're going to get overwhelmed! We need to get ourselves to a better vantage point!" "Like where?!" Anthony snapped incredulously, his eyes swiftly searching. Try as he might, he could see little more than the hides of active and dying Grimm. "These things have us pinned in! I'm literally seeing nothing but Grimm everywhere!" His eyebrows furrowed, and a tinge of worry flashed through his eyes. He had caught Rhea's mocking words, and he was more than ready to dismiss them. But was she right? Had Yang unintentionally played a part in increasing the number of invading Grimm? Ha hadn't even stopped to consider that much. Furthermore, had that anger been enough to block out Lionel's hint of one of his darkest secrets? He shook his head out, giving a grunt as he shoved himself to his feet. He shook his head, breathing hard and glaring at the creatures. "We keep fighting until we've made a way." He growled, his grip tightening on the blade. "That's all that counts. If we don't, we die! The last thing I need right now is to make that red-haired bastard happy!" In contrast to his statement, Harkin's team wasn't too happy. "Sir." Fehin said tersely, landing beside Harkin just as the latter was downing another Grimm with his pistol. "Additional reinforcements have arrived in the form of students. They seem considerably equipped and experienced. Recommend we find a way to retreat while the majority of attention is focused on the Grimm." Lionel snorted as he retreated to Harkin's side. "Yeah? Well, good luck on that." He remarked, giving a slight glare at the mass of monsters. "If it ain't the students, it's the Grimm themselves. The freaks are everywhere you can see." He gave a humorless chuckle, twirling his sword around a little. "We really landed ourselves in a pickle, haven't we, boss?" "We're not in the hole yet, boys." Harkin answered bluntly, keeping his gaze on the dark creatures. A few pistol rounds of high-power tore the heads off a few Beowolves daring to near him and the group. "Just give me a little bit more time and our problems will be solved." He huffed, passing a glare over at the nearby Hunters-in-training. "Well, most of our problems, anyway." Yang thought it was all lost. Her eyes closed, tears beginning to flow down her face, her body still aching and sore from her fight with Neo. The entirety of this situation escalated all because of her. Even with her friends' arrival from the Academy, they couldn't match the sheer mass of monsters coming out of the hole. And without her strength to rely on, she was dead weight to her team and her classmates. But then, something made a proclaimation. A sound of what seemed like reverberating engines. Turning her face to crane up she gaped. An entire fleet of hover-transports descending in mass from an even larger battleship/carrier. The white matte design made it almost seem like metal birds came to their aid like angels, swooping upon the demons emerging from the jaws of Hell itself. From the flanks of the transports came the recently announced superior android, Atlesian Knight-200's. The AK-200's leaped out with Dust packed wepaons and made automatic targeting to all Grimm in the vicinity. Combined with the already fighting students, the horde finally began to be pushed back. Encouraged to fight the tin soldiers, grenades and explosives were utilized in synchronization, blasting away the larger of the fiends before the students' eyes. The tide of war was beginning to turn, as the hundreds of oncoming creatures were kept in a boxed perimeter and hunted wherever they ran across Vale City with efficiency and swiftness. "It looks like the calvary is here," Pyrrha announced with another harry of shots from her collapsed spear in its rifle form. "Oh thank goodness," Jaune sighed, taking time to rest on his sword on the ground, impaled and looking around exhausted. He was thankful no casualties were seen from what he could figure. The Grimm managed not to take any of his fellow classmates' lives. In his pause of relaxation, he failed to notice a large Alpha Beowolf emerge from the masses. It soared through the air and locked its blood-red eyes on Seth and his nearby teammates. With its mouth aimed to clamp down on him, he knew that he wouldn't be able to save them in time. All he could do was shout one phrase as it fell to claim their lives in a ferocious surprise attack. "LOOK OUT!" Even without the enhancement of his Semblance, time seemed to slow down for Seth. He twisted around in reflex as a response to Jaune's alarmed call. But his body froze when he saw that the Alpha had closed too much distance. The creature had bent low, its jaws of sharp and serrated teeth inches from his throat. He was too shocked to raise his gun and fire, too stunned to lift his limbs and push the beast away, too stricken to run for his life. But even though his motor functions had been rendered dumb, he was still cognitive enough to hear the screams and harried steps of his teammates as they rushed to save him. None of them would succeed. Another did. As the tips of the Beowulf's teeth grazed Seth's neck, he saw a steel ribbon come from his peripheral. Its edge sliced through the creature's neck, freeing the head from the body and allowing both halves to collapse to the ground. As the blade was lowered, he twisted his head to see grim blue eyes looking back at him. She wore a brown long-sleeved shirt, skirt and boots alongside a pale green vest and pants. Two scabbards were attached to each hip via a burgundy sash, with only one of them occupied with a blade - a saber, to be specific. The other one was lowered at her side, readied to be swung again if necessary. "You look like hell." Sahara muttered quietly, her brows furrowing slightly. There was a dryness in her voice that earned a small and weak smirk from him. He relaxed, mildly shrugging in disbelief. "Hell?" He repeated, his voice initially hoarse. "What? No, no, I look awesome. I thought we went over this, Sahara." His shock was pushed down when he saw a smile only slightly stronger than his grace her face. The girl turned away and shook her head before focusing her attention on the horde. Her free hand grasped the hilt of her other saber, swiftly drawing it to her other side. "Apparently, not enough to keep yourself from staying out of shit like this." She retorted, her humor only slightly tainted by firmness. "Y'all might wanna hang back and let us new arrivals handle the rest of these Grimm. From the looks of things, your team and RWBY's could certainly use the break." Seth grimaced, his hold on his revolvers tightening. "Hey, wait a minute. I ain't out of this yet, why do I--" "I ain't arguing with you over this, boy!" Sahara suddenly snapped, her head jerking so that she could glare at him over her shoulder. It was enough to shut down any protests he had. "Your team and your sister team took a beating. If you keep fighting as you are, you're just gonna get torn new holes. Me and the rest of 'em, I presume, have a lot more energy. We'll be able to handle this, but someone's gotta handle playing the medic for the wounded and the tired." With displeasure at the fact that she was right, Seth let out a groan and sheathed his pistols. Aside from that lone Beowulf, no other Grimm had slipped through the Atlesian lines. For the relative part, letting down their guard would be safe... assuming that Harkin and his cronies would be more preoccupied with the Grimm. "Fine. But the ones outside our groups--" "Aren't good guys." Sahara interrupted, briefly closing her eyes and sighing. "Yeah. I know." Ignoring the look of surprise on Seth's face, she turned her head to see Rachel approaching her with the other two teammates following close behind her. She couldn't help a cheeky smile from reaching her face. "Took you guys long enough." "No matter how fast we run, we can never catch up to you when you're looking for a fight." Rachel deadpanned, looking over at the Grimm. She balled her fists as she focused her gaze on the Grimm, slowly turning it to Harkin and his minions. Her stoic expression faltered slightly when she caught the incredulous gaze of Fehin bearing into her own, and she turned away from him quicker than she did for the rest. "How are we gonna do this?" "Loud, hard and fast." Sahara responded immediately, raising her sabers a little higher. "With those tin men keeping the freaks busy, we shouldn't have many problems." As they prepared to continue the bout, Seth had retreated back to the hole where his team and team RWBY had stayed near. He only slowed his walk when Rohan ran up to him, intensely surveying his form. "Are you well?" He asked with a tone that made it seem like a statement more than anything. "Did you happen to suffer any additional injuries?" "I'll live." Seth grunted, folding his arms across his chest and stopping when he neared both groups. "What about you guys?" "That was an invigorating but exhausting encounter." Elisha breathed, leaning on his katana and hanging his head. "If I hadn't been put through what I was, it would've been much easier. But fortunately, and despite what this pain is telling me, I'll live. For the time being, anyway." "I can't wait for the moment I get back my damn arm." Anthony growled, glaring at where his synthetic arm should've been before switching the gaze over to his sword. "Swinging this bigass blade is just burning out more energy on my end. Sooner or later, I'm just gonna pass out." Too tired to pick on Anthony, Seth settled merely for a more supporting statement. "You're doing pretty good so far, boss." He responded, giving Anthony a wink. "Just hang in there a minute longer, and everything'll be fine. Even us." After taking in Anthony's chuckle, Seth shifted his gaze over to team RWBY. However, he stopped when he saw the crumpled Yang. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he once again picked up his walk. This time, it was much more brisk. "Hang on for just a minute. I think I see something I don't like." "Seth?" Anthony cocked an eyebrow before casting his gaze over to where he was headed. He regarded Seth's back with disbelief, his feet moving him to follow. "What do you think you're--?" "Now, what's all this supposed to be?" Seth interrupted, kneeling down to Yang's level and giving a light yet incredulous shrug. "You trying to sit down on the job? I mean, I kinda like that you're up for breaking the rules and all, but I'm pretty sure that Glynda's gonna find out about me doing your schoolwork for ya." Although his tone was rough, there wasn't much hostility behind it. A tired, weak smile emphasized this. Yang weakly smiled. This brown haired tramp had a lot of gall to waltz up and act all superior to her. She knew she was haggard and out for the count, but she wasn't about to let him turn his nose up at her. If only she had more verbal imperative from the rest of her team, to challenge her rather than to harness her and control her. How did it become the person she couldn't stand the most be the one who understood her more than anyone? "Don't talk so big, Seth," She huffed, straining with effort till she stood upright with a stumble. Grinning, she punched her hand and cracked her knuckles as her aura visibly swirled around her body. "I can still pull my weight. I just needed a nap, that's all." Turning to see a nearby Ursa, she leaped in a blur of high velocity, her body shouldering it into the chest. Making it skid back, she began to unleash a barrage of strong-armed punches into its abdomen and upper torso. Smashing through bone and crushing its organs within, she'd grab its leaning carcass before it fell to twirl around and launch it towards another of the horde near to Team Ares. "COME AND GET SOME! TEAM RUBY STILL HAS ITS FOURTH MEMBER READY TO KICK BUTT!" She cried out with gusto, launching herself back into the fray of the dwindling numbers of the horde. Jaune sighed with relief at the sight, shield smashing a downed Grimm in the neck. "Looks like we're thinning the herd. Even Yang's recovered enough to fight. Where does she get all that stamina to holler like that?" "She's the unstoppable juggernaught of Team RWBY. The strongest and scariest freshman of Beacon. I doubt there's anyone who could keep her down for long," Pyrrha complimented with an awestruck smile at her handiwork. "Not that we have much left to clean up. The puppet troops of the north are containing the situation effeciently." "Good thing they came in when they did. Don't know if my blade could cut down anymore Grimm; there's so many-" "One issue at a time, Jaune," She reassured him with a pat on his shoulder, winking at him. "Like, what shall we do for a date after this is over?" "I-Is now really the best time to ask that?!" "I did say later, didn't I?" She chuckled, dancing away to combat more Grimm while leaving Jaune flustered and frustrated. "Dang it, Pyrrha! You can't just do that to a guy," He bemoaned while slashing a Grimm raven that got too close to the reach of his sword. "She can, and she did~!" Nora teased, her form dancing past him in the pursuit of more Grimm. Her swing was followed by an explosive uppercut, catching an Ursa Major by the chin and ripping the head clean off the shoulders. Both it and the body was sent flying upwards, dissolving before they could crash into a nearby building. Like Yang, she didn't hesitate to leap into the thinning horde via a grenade-enhanced hammer jump. "You'd better keep up, Jauney boy, or else she's gonna leave you in the dust~!" "Keep moving forward, Jaune." Ren monotoned, swiftly following after his orange-haired partner-in-crime. "Well, I'm glad someone's got a lot of energy left!" Weiss huffed from RWBY's side, trying her best to stay alert and on her feet. There was still a severe pain ringing through her head, and it was taking all she had not to let the dizzy steal her lunch. "I can barely see straight! Stupid Harkin and his big old bat...!" "We can rest later." Blake assured her, firmly yet softly. After sparing a glance over at a charging Yang, she shifted hard eyes over to Harkin and his crew. "We've got them outnumbered. This might be a good time to--" She stopped herself when she saw Harkin abruptly turn his gaze to the dropships. His bat retracted, allowing him to sheathe it on his back. He stretched both of his free hands toward the nearest transports, narrowing his eyes and clenching his teeth. His body began to glow a bright crimson, his glow causing nearby combatants to look at him. But it wasn't just the glow; there was a strong and undescribable power emanating from his being, something that could only be described as a physical manifestation of fury and the desire to kill. What Grimm remained had also paused, their heads swiveling to eye the young gangster. "What in the hell...?" Mose muttered, unable to get much else out before Harkin spoke. "Well played, runts of Beacon!" Harkin called out mockingly, managing a toothy smile even as sweat fell down his face. Despite the obvious tone of contempt that came along with it, one could hear genuine respect in his tone. "I guess that even amongst the midst of you fledglings, there are fighters. You all dance a good number. But all good things have to come to an end. Just for you, though," He swung his hands downward. "Here's a much needed dramatic finish!" The transports, which had been struck with the same aura of red, suddenly started spiraling downwards at high speeds. There was nothing but the sounds of mechanical whirrs and groans as the ships were ripped from the pilots' control and sent to their own demise. More than a few eyes regarded it with shock and horror. "....well, that's just uncalled for." Rachel muttered. "Seriously." "Run like hell!!" Sahara screamed, scrambling to dive out of the way. A Battle Hard Fought A handful of ships proceeded to crash into the ground and into the nearby buildings, sending shattered metal, brick, dust and other hazardous debris flying in a storm of artillery. A brief dust storm was created, and it waas only then that the red aura of Harkin's receded. Breathing heavily, he jerked his head for the rest of his compatriots to follow him. Without further word, they used the storm as cover to escape from everyone's line of sight. It was enough to halt the youngsters' attacks for sure. But the soldiers of metal and gears continued to exterminate the Grimm till the last one didn't remain. The hail of gunfire and use of built-in melee weapons could be heard even among the chaos of raining debris that rattled the landscape. While most got out of the way of such things, one Huntress in particular didn't fare so well. "Coward!" Yang shouted, chasing after Harkin after feeling a wave of nauseous lethal intent lapsed over her. But in the midst of her charge, she witnessed the fireball of metal and stone sent a wind of rubble towards the lot. Skidding to a halt, she braced her arms in front of her face and felt an impact of agonizing pain. A boulder shaped piece of brick and mortar smashed into her front, a chip of it smacking into her head and creating a bloodied gash beyond the blonde locks. In the storm, she dropped to the ground limp and faded into unconsciousness. Even during the chaos, Ruby realized something was amiss and dared to scour the dust for their enemy-turned allies. Instead she found her sister, bleeding and out of it, putting her into a state of panic. Putting Crescent Rose away, she bent down and lifted her up, running to where the rest of her friends were gathered with a wide-eyed stare that hinted fear behind her usually hopeful silver orbs. "HELP! SOMEBODY, Y-YANG ISN'T MOVING!" She cried out. "Ruby?!" Jaune turned, running up to the sisters and looked with worry stricken on his features. "Is she okay? What happened-?" "I-I don't know! One moment, everything is fine and the next, that explosion! And then this! I-I think she got hit by the debris and didn't have enough Aura to shield herself," She surmised shakily, looking between her and the leader of Team JNPR. "Jaune, do you have any Aura left to give?" "Uh, sure. I just don't know if I'm qualified to transfer it-" "Jaune, what happened?!" Pyrrha rushed up to their side, wafting the dust away as it cleared. "Yang's hurt. I don't know if she can heal with how little Aura she has-" "Take my hand." "Isn't this not the time to-?" He was interrupted by the red-head as she grasped his hand and closed her eyes with knitted concentration. Between the two, she began to glow a soft crimson and he a pure silver. Gently she reached out with their clasped hands to touch Ruby's sister. In a moment of anxious waiting, they'd see a tint of dark energy rim around her, and visibly shimmer over her skin. Coughing, they could see the wound on her head heal, leaving it only slightly dirtied by her cut's blood and the other scrapes or bruises the impact made on her. Her eyes fluttered and she wearily looked at Ruby along with Jaune and Pyrrha. Groaning she rolled her eyes and bit her lower lip. "I screwed up, didn't I?" Yang inquired with rhetorical awareness. "Yang! Thank goodness you're alright!" "Glad to see you're okay too, Ruby." "You had a serious head injury. You should consider taking it easy when everything settles down," Pyrrha recommended, almost sternly, but remaining soft-eyed thanks to Jaune's proximity. "Eh, I'll take it under advisement," She remarked with a snort, being let down by her younger sibling, leaning on her with support with a smirk. "I still feel like a ton of bricks juggled in my insides and that I fought for an entire day straight. Gonna take that advise." "Smart," Jaune quipped. "Not in the mood, Jaune," Yang growled with annoyance, causing Ruby and Pyrrha to giggle. Not surprisingly, the rest of team RWBY, team ARES and team MKBD had crowded her when they realized that the blonde berserker was hurt. All questions and demands, however, ceased when they saw Pyrrha and Jaune restore her functionality. Out of the relieved looks shown between them, Anthony and Blake expressed the most of it. Anthony slipped to Yang's side, wrapping his lone arm around her shoulders in a ginger hug for the sake of not agitating wounds. "She'll be fine." He assure the rest of them, with one of his eyes closed in a mixture between a wink and a wince. "After everything that's happened, I wouldn't be surprised if it took just a day's worth of rest to get her back on her feet." "How fortunate for her." Weiss muttered dryly, groaning in pain as she held her head with a free hand. She sucked in air through briefly clenched teeth as a sharp but mild pain shot through her skull, glaring in the direction of where Harkin and his allies had fled. "If we ever meet again, I'm going to make sure that he'll pay for giving me this headache!" "Amongst other things." Blake muttered, her glare harder than Weiss's as she shared the heiress's glance. After a moment of it, she turned herself away in favor of regarding Yang. After working out her arms a little, she sighed and sheathed Gambol Shroud. She approached Yang's side, slightly cocking an eyebrow. Her eyes briefly glimmered with a bit of mischief. "But we can think about them some other time. Right now, let's focus on getting ourselves together." Anthony cocked an eyebrow as he watched. "Blake...?" "This is non-negotiable, by the way." Blake lowered her voice to an almost-whisper once she reached Yang's side. Then, she suddenly bent down to sweep the blonde off her feet and into a bridal carry. She kept a casual expression on her face even amidst the looks and sounds of shock she received. "The Atlas soldiers can clean up the rest of the Grimm lurking. We can use the break." "I can definitely agree with that," Elisha breathed, getting over his shock quickly enough to voice his feelings. He let out a harsh sigh, pressing a palm against his chest and wincing. "Stars, I can feel those injuries coming back already. I'm surprised they didn't turn earlier with all that fighting..." "I guess we're just that tough!" Seth declared, passing him a grin and a shrug. "So tough that even we don't know how far we can go." "Heeey." Anthony leered at Blake while placing a hand on his hip. Although his stare seemed accusatory, the small smirk on his face made it clear he was playing. "That's my girl you're carrying, Belladonna." "I know." Blake answered simply. "Since you look like you have your hands tied--" She earned a sarcastic snort. "--I figured I'd take over for the time being." "Such a wonderful partner!" Bonnie exclaimed, giving a few claps and a wide grin. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Rachel approaching the group with her hands on her hips. However, she kept her voice directed at the group. "Always willing to help at a moment's notice! You're very lucky to have such a person working alongside you, Yang Xiao Long!" "You trying to say something, midget?" Delilah growled playfully, reaching over and roughly tussling a startled Bonnie's hair. "What, you trying to say I'm not a good enough partner for you? Is that it?" "Gah--!" Bonnie squealed, trying to swat Delilah's hand away. "I wasn't--! That's not what I-- Stop messing up my hair!" "Glad to see that you guys are still with your present company." Rachel muttered, switching her arm position and folding them across her chest. She huffed, scanning the area of smashed debris and thinning Grimm. "Even despite all of this..." "This is going to take a long time to fix." Mose muttered, his eyes staring hard at the partially destroyed buildings and the crashed ships. "At the risk of sounding lazy, I really don't wanna be part of the crew that has to help fix this. I've been through enough without trying to smash bricks back together, thank you very much." Oddly enough, Kiarra was silent. She too was gazing at the destruction, with a forlorn and bitter expression. Her rifle was hung at her side, her eyes almost completely without light. But luckily for her, no one seemed to notice it. "Where's your sister?" Delilah asked Rachel, stopping her torture of Bonnie much to the latter's relief. "She went to tail the guys that just pulled out of there." Rachel answered, cocking an eyebrow and sparing a glance at where they had exited. "Just who were they, anyway? I saw 'em fighting with you and then--" "They weren't friends, trust me." Mose interrupted. "They were the ones that happened to cause all of this. We'll explain it all later, when we're in a better place to do so." Yang was taken off guard with how possessive Blake acted with her. Stubborn to a fault, she knew she was in pain but refused to be coddled. But the ease her friend and teammate took her off the ground made he realize just how tired she was. Blinking owlishly at her, she turned to look at her annoyed boyfriend and then back at Blake. Sighing, she closed her eyes and smiled. "It's okay, Big Guy," Yang reassured him, mischieviously adding with her arms looping up and over the Faunus' head to rest behind her neck. Winking at her, she continued with a smirk. "I won't do annything to make you jealous; much." Blake was only flustered for a moment, pouting and followed up with an eye-roll snort, "Yeah, whatever you say." Weiss sighed, looking over to Elisha and trotting to the nearest airship that had parked near them, "I'm heading back to my dorm to sleep this headache off; among the concussion I certainly have among other injuries. Anyone who wants to head back now should follow my lead." "Oh, okay," Ruby turned and gave a quick peck on Seth's cheek, winking at him as she skipped behind Weiss. "Wait for me, Weiss!" "Let's go home then," Blake intoned with a nod, joining the rest of her team that began piling into the nearest airship while the Atlesian Knights set up a protective perimeter. "We should probably head back as well," Ren spoke quietly, placing a hand on Kiarra with a sympathetic smile on his face. "If you want to talk, let's do it back at the comfort of Beacon, okay?" "Come on, slow polks, or I'll leave ya behind!" "You better not, Nora!" Jaune bellowed as he scrambled to get to her before she took off. Meanwhile he had left a slowly walking Pyrrha who was deep in thought. "Have you made your peace, doomed one?" It was those words that made her think there was something to what was said. What could this nutjob know about her destiny? Was their a forlorn future awaiting her or was there an inevitable reprisal coming from the enemy? Whatever it was, she felt a pit growing in her stomach and her gaze became distant. The doubt began to build within the young Nikos' head if she could stop what was to come. In Flight We Plan "Well...that could've gone better," Emerald drawled out, trying to break the tension. No sane person could blame her, for their scheme had ultimately been thoroughly broken in her eyes. The Grimm were annihilated quicker than they could make to the scene and very little damage or loss of life was had. The expensive venture seemed too costly for the low level of results that were made. "Will you give it a rest?" Mercury snorted, arms crossed and back turned towards her. "I rather not vocally clarify that we got our proverbial hind areas kicked." "I'm just being honest." "Honesty isn't a desirable trait, Em." "Says the assassin with metal legs." "Says the theif with a checkered past." "You know-" "Oh look," Cinder noted, interrupting their banter with an eerily cool tempered tone. Harkin and his particular band of partners arrived, some more worse for wear than others. Among them was Neo whom gave a simple smirk, twirling her umbrella while winking in a cheeky way towards the young mob boss. With her joining Cinder's right with Mercury and Emerald on her left, Cinder tapped her foot expectantly while her smile dimmed and her eyes narrowed at them all. "I'd like to hear your explanation, Harkin, and please be careful how you word it. With your confidant, Roman, jailed and his associates missing, you now bear the complete brunt of this failure. So, make your peace and debrief me about this fiasco." These were not the words Harkin was looking forward to hearing - albeit it was debatable in the case of Wiles and Grizzly being missing. He wore a disgruntled look as he shuffled forward, his hands stuck in his pockets in an attempt to look casual. Inwardly, he was stewing with frustration simmered by apprehension. The entire plan of having both teams annihilated had failed, and the Grimm breach had easily been contained despite the "assistance" of Yang and whomever else that had been stewing on negative emotions. Now, as the next in their "chain of command", he had to explain why things had gone south. He had to explain failure to Cinder, of all people. Swallowing his bitterness in favor of self-preservation, he kept his tone on a mostly neutral but insisting tone. "Hunters happened to land too close to our base of operations." He began, briefly spreading his arms out. "We had to start the train early, otherwise they would've potentially destroyed it." His eyes narrowed briefly as he remembered the particularly violent battles. "And I do mean "destroy" in that exact sense. The fighting nearly ripped the entire train off the rails before it could even reach the sealed exit tunnels." "A bunch of White Fang were lost down there." Lionel commented casually, waving a dismissive hand. "Along with a handful of tech from my company." He sighed, looking exasperatedly in the direction of the crash site. "A shame, too. Much of it didn't even get a chance to see action. A waste of my good Lien, right there..." "And despite all of that, the interfering teams RWBY and ARES plus their respective lead Hunters were able to survive." Fehin muttered, his arms folded across his chest. There was a mixture of thoughtfulness and irritation on his face as he spared a glance in the direction of the crash site. "They're becoming a blemish on the good record." Rhea remained silent. Her hands were folded behind her back, and she seemed more interested in looking out into the city. Harkin took in a breath, daring to look a little bit more frustrated. "Surely, all of this can't be my fault." He insisted, pressing a hand against his chest. "I - we - went along with this gig and followed the plan down to the letter. If we had enough time, this would've went off without a hitch!" "Yeah, it's almost like you're making excuses now," Mercury intoned with an exaggerating lean next to Emerald. A smirk adorned his brash face, head angled towards Harkin while waving his arms. He laughed snidely, shaking his hands all the while. "Aw, we get it, big guy, we do. The son of Havigen doesn't make mistakes. Everyone else is at fault; that's why you have your underlings do your crap for you." "And what do you know?" Emerald chimed in, making a mocking gesture with her hand as if she was looking into the far horizon. "I...don't see any scapegoats for you to blame." "It's almost like taking responsibility is a new thing for you," Mercury winked and clicked his tongue against his teeth. "Oh, but don't be mad at us. We're just here to enlighten you of your faults, because you don't seem to be man enough to accept all the way just how royally you screwed up," Emerald snapped her fingers and swayed her hips in a sassy manner. "You got no one to blame but yourself for not handling unexpected problems like a real professional." Neo made a whistling sound of a falling plane that crashed into an open palm, spluttering her tongue and ending with a cheshire grin at the team. "That's enough you three," Cinder waved a hand dismissively, walking straight up to Harkin in an elegant stride. To anyone else observing, they would see it as suggestive or just a friendly approach. But to the man in question, it'd be like a predator approaching a lamb, waiting to sink its teeth into its prey. Her eyes glowed orange-gold, a hand reached out... ...and brushed the side of his face in a soothing manner. "It's alright. I accept your apology. In fact, for being so honest, I want to congratulate you." "W-Wait, seriously?" Emerald balked. "Didn't they just majorly screw up?" "That was a calculated mistake," She intoned with a turn to look at her subordinate, her fiery gleam fading into a calmer one. "We anticipated that, in order to move forward to Phase 3, we needed to make a sacrifice. One that was convincing enough to make our enemies lower the gates and say the enemy is defeated. That sacrifice was Roman Torchwick and his band of allies who made a no-show," Turning back to look at Harkin, she brushed her thumb over his chin and chuckled throatily, using her other hand to toy with his chest with her fingertips. "Didn't you find it strange how surprised those 'friends' of yours appeared right under your nose, so close to your base? Who do you think became aware of their 'field trip' as a reconissance mission in disguise and thought, 'why not give them what they want'?" Mercury couldn't help but snort and bark out a laugh, pointing accusingly at her, "Y-You sold out the whole operation, on purpose?!" "No, I merely guided them so they could cross paths, making it seem like it was only their own 'experience' and 'professional insight' that led them there. All it took was a little course change for two particular Hunters with their respective teams; who snapped at the bait all too easily," Cinder replied, laughing lightly. Cupping Harkin's chin, she slid her face tantilizingly close to the young mobster and breathed huskily over his face. Eyes reignited and she whispered quietly to him. "I hope you aren't mad at me, for I am highly flattered by your ability to thrive in the thickest situation. Despite all of this, you maintain your composure and keep your team together. I could use your help...if you're still interested?" To complement this moment, she slid her lips to wetly smooch against his own, her eyes half-lidded in its burning gaze with nearly predatory inquiry as she waited for his reply. A moment only further sold by Emerald's greatly emphasized aghast expression, Mercury smugly smirking and Neo grinning ear to ear at the scene. Harkin could always count on Emerald and Mercury to rub salt in an open wound whenever it was needed. His eyes narrowed, his mouth curling into an irate frown as he glared at the two and Neo. But he didn't allow himself to go any further than that; he had to focus on explaining himself to Cinder over participating in a war of words right in front of her. He was only thankful that Lionel hadn't added his own input, as even he had the decency to look somewhat subdued. But it was afterwards that he was shown just how unpredictable Cinder could be. When the woman approached him, a few beads of sweat slid down his face. He had closed his eyes and stilled himself. He waited for the burn that would mar him for the rest of his days, if not an agonizing death by fire. But he didn't expect the woman to lay a comforting hand on his cheek and congratulate him. At first, he regarded her with silent bemusement. But as she revealed her hand in his enemies' interference, he felt shock and then contained relief. During the train operation, he had been fully ready to accept the possibility that his foes could detect his and his allies' actions through some sort of omnipresence. But to hear that it was by Cinder's will that their discovery was so? She had made certain that team ARES was in the position to get captured and tortured as they had. She had ensured his catharsis. It was the reason he found himself smiling in a blend of intrigue and amusement, listening to her and paying mild curiosity to her physical intrusions. It wasn't as if he had any sort of attraction to her or anything of that nature. But there was a certain way her moves went in perfect fusion with her choice of words that he found pleasing to listen to and watch. Maybe he was lying to himself, that he did harbor some sort of attraction. Maybe he just realized a way for hypnosis outside of the black-and-white spinning swirl. Maybe it was the fact that she was once again demonstrating that undeniable charisma of hers. But whatever the reason, he liked it. With him next up in the chain of command, he could see more of it. If the following words didn't convey his interests, he was certain the act of responding to her kiss would. It was for only the brief instant that she allowed it, he moved his lips to catch hers. It was bold, but not too forceful or aggressive. There was no love or lust behind the response; at best, it could've been best described as a more intimate hand shake. When she pulled away, he put forth a devilish and confident grin. "You and I both want this city heeled." He replied. "As long as that sticks, you have my hand." "...ew." The normally stoic Fehin muttered, his expression contorting in mild disgust. "Don't be rude, Dusty." Lionel said casually, shrugging as he turned over to a still occupied Rhea. "Think it's actually kind of touching--" He was interrupted by the sound of boots hitting the roof they were on, some ways behind Cinder's group. Eyes turned to see a slightly battered Sahara. A saber was wielded in each hand and lowered at her sides. She regarded the group at large with a somewhat irate expression, her eyes scanning each individual with scrutiny. Then a small smirk crossed her lips. She took a few casual steps forward, speaking as if she was joining a much more casual conversation. "And here I thought I'd lose your tail in all of that. I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" "Pfffft, no. You mind passing some popcorn, cause I wouldn't mind recording this-" "NO!" "Oh lighten up, Em. She was obviously just giving him her version of a handshak. It's not like this is a serious forward move; right?" "If you two are quite done," Cinder sighed, releasing her hold on Harkin and stepping towards Sahara. Grin stretched across her face she looked around and to her satisfaction, the rest of her ignorant team was nowhere to be seen or felt. Crossing her arms she stepped back and nodded to her. "What's the status of the White Fang? I understand we took casualties but I'm still in the dark with what happened with Grizzly and Willis. Did they fly the coop, or are they no longer with us?" Sahara huffed, sheathing both of her swords and folded her arms across her chest. "As much as I would've liked either, they're still with us. I just radioed in a moment ago; Grizzly responded and told me that they were off someplace else to patch their wounds." "Not a big fan of 'em, sis?" Lionel inquired, tilting his head and giving an amused grin. "Grizzly I don't mind." Sahara answered, switching her arm position. She used one hand to grip her hip while the other remained at her side. "But Willis? A history of him trying to kill me, along with other things--" She muttered the last part under her breath, shivering a little. "--doesn't exactly do well for good business partnerships." "What about Dad?" Harkin asked, stepping beside Cinder. "The old man couldn't make it. The security Atlas has got down there and the Grimm were too hard for him to sneak through. He gives his regards, though, and he's sorry he couldn't make the meet." After giving a casual shrug, Sahara frowned. "As for the rest of the White Fang... well, they either got smashed by those Hunter teams or ripped up by the Grimm. If any survived, they're gonna be stuck in those tunnels for a good while." Lionel sighed, rolling his eyes. "While that's a bit funny and those numbers can be replaced, this whole shindig just gives the White Fang more reason not to go along with the plan. With all due respect, Lady Fall, I reckon they won't even listen to you at this point." "They'll listen alright," A voice manifested from beyond their senses, feet making themselves heard in the casual steps crossing one in front of the other. They'd see the source coming from none other than Adam Taurus, the radicalized and young leader of Vale's White Fang sect. His infamous bull's horns hidden behind a perfectly erect set red bladed hair. With the telltale white mask with red Grimm markings -including a pair of horns flecked over his mask's eye slits- covering his upper features from the nose to over the forehead, he held his infamous Wilt & Blush in his right hand; sheathed and at the ready. The black silk trench coat, complete with crimson rose etchings along the bottom and a red rose strung over a white Grimm background on its back, complete with slit-sleeves. The red inner lining, over the left shoulder red-white emblem, red collar undershirt and black suit pants finished with a pair of gloves and leather shoes gave him a sophisticated mafioso look. "After all, I'm in charge of this land's White Fang. Even in the midst of this defeat, they'll be spurred in resolve that the defenses of Vale City are not impregnable. If it can happen here, not even their ivory towers of Beacon is safe from intrusion." "And with Phase 3, we'll be able to make that vision a reality," Cinder nodded with affirmation, grinning at the sight of Adam. She attempted to approach him, only to find him hold out his gun-blade towards her and a fierce glare aimed at the woman. Arching a brow, she grinned wryly and placed a hand on one hip with the other gesturing a fireball in her palm. "Really? You're going to give me that look, this far into the game?" "I am not ''one of your henchmen, or your partners, Cinder Fall. You do well to remember that," He snarled, his voice filled with contempt as he looked at all of those present. Even Lionel wasn't exempt from his framed look of disgust -hidden along with his scarred face- as he previewed them all with his glance. "You are lucky that the White Fang has such unquestionable loyalty to the cause and my word. This fiasco cannot be used to swindle them into a suicidal operation; one that appears to be the case, now that Roman Torchwick is captured along with those two vermin acting like cowards." "Willis and Grizzly aren't done. They will be back," Cinder intoned with a thin-slitted expression. "As for Roman, his capture was part of the third stage. Intended, in order to make them all believe he was the mastermind behind all of these schemes. As for Havigen, he'll regroup with his organization and help us undermine further communication with the rest of the Hunters in Vale or possible contact to the other kingdoms. Everything is working out fine, Adam. Trust me-" "I don't," He growled, hand gripped tightly on his weapon, his hair becoming a bright crimson along with the outline of his body a dense Aura formed. "I turned you away because I saw no value in allying with someone of your ilk. But you returned with promise of results and the reveal of your strength impressed me. Do not think you sway me with anything else, otherwise you'll find out just how unattractive I can make you, Cinder Fall." "Now-Now, we don't want a fight here, do we?" Emerald tried to placate, putting herself beside Cinder and looking back between the two. "I don't know. I'd like to see them fight," Mercury rubbed his neck, shrugging with a lopsided smile on his face. "Not helping!" "What?! You know you want to see it too! Smug sonofabitch comes in and says he'd see us all beheaded with our bodies feasted by his furry and scaled friends like the cannibal creeps they are," Turning briefly, he winked at Lionel, before returning back to Sahara. "I mean, come on, do you want this psycho on our squad or what?" "Why would you ask the double agent if she wants the domestic terrorist to keep on the team?! Are you dense?!" Emerald hissed with an incredulous shriek. "Hey, Pot?" Sahara asked, giving the two personal minions of Cinder an amused smirk. "This is Kettle. You're black." Mentally cheering at the snicker Lionel gave, she spared a glance at Adam. She didn't want to stare too much; he seemed irate enough at the group as it was. "And as much as it might shock you? Yeah, I'd like him to stick with us a little bit more. Sane or not, the important thing is that he's on our side. And another important thing," She cocked an eyebrow. "Is that we keep on ''his good side. I know that's gonna be a bit hard for you, Mercury, considering that you're one of the biggest bags of douche I know at this point, but I'm willing to put a little faith in you." At this point, Lionel had to cover his mouth to stifle his giggles. The casual tone combined with the sass was hilarious. "Speaking of sticking to other people's good sides," Sahara continued, giving a final nod before turning away. She took steps to the roof's edge, peering down below. "I've gotta ride outta here. Can't be gone for too long before the boys and girl get suspicious." She looked over her shoulder. "I'll keep you updated as much as I can." "Take care not to get too familiar with the pint-sized six-shooter!" Lionel called out, cupping his hands to his mouth. "Y'know if that happens, I'll have a camera ready around the corner!" There was a brief flash of emotion in Sahara's eyes - too quick to be read properly. She rolled her eyes, shook her head and focused her attention back down to the ground below. "I'll remember that. You make sure not to go too crazy." Lionel shrugged, smirking and dropping his hands. "All right, but I'm not pinky swearing on it." This was promptly followed by Sahara hopping off the edge, disappearing out of their sight as she plummeted to the ground. There was a loud thud quickly followed by faint footsteps that quieted soon after. "...as blunt as she was about it," Harkin muttered, folding his arms across his chest as he looked between Adam and Cinder. "She does hold a point. Our goal is the most important thing here." He cast his gaze particularly on Adam, allowing a little bit of challenge to leak through his composure. "Let's save the in-violence for when we're all good and done." He turned to his personal compatriots, frowning a little bit in slight disdain. "In the eyes of the public, Roman Torchwick is the mastermind of these recent operations. In order to keep that illusion and to avoid the attention of the increased security, we'll have to quiet our operations from here on out, if not silence them completely. As much as I'd love to strike some more terror into the heart of the worthless law enforcement here, I'd rather not have those tin men up my ass." "Amen to that." Lionel muttered. "But there is a silver lining to this." Harkin continued, the frown morphing into a small smirk as he expanded his gaze to the entire group. "The sudden show of force by Atlas won't sit well with the kingdom of Vale. Not only will it promote possible tension between the two kingdom, it expresses just how little the people here believe in their own security. Despite our losses, I think that this'll produce a lot of fruit in our near future." He turned his gaze to Cinder, giving her a confident smile as he turned his attention to her. At this point, Rhea had turned away from her city gazing in order to regard Cinder curiously. "We're all listening, my Queen. Where shall we go from here?" Previous Chapter | Next Chapter